Founded 1990
Ingólfshöfði Puffin Tour
Birdwatching and History Trip
When is the Puffin season?
Early May - mid August
What is included:
- Tractor-drawn hay cart ride
- Guided walk
- Sightseeing
- Bird watching
- Nature reserve visit
- Free parking
Will we see puffins: 99% chances to see puffins. Best time to visit is in late June - early August, but we offer the trip in the period that we are confident to spot some on every trip
Price
Adults 12.500 ISK
Kids 6-16 years old 6.250
Please note!
Younger children are
not allowed on open departures
See Ingólfshöfði Private Tour and our private Black Coast Tour for tours possible with all ages.
Free parking
How long is the tour?
2 1/2 hour
Hay cart ride takes 25 -30 min each way
1 1/2 hour guided walk on Ingólfshöfði nature reserve
How difficult is the walk?
Rather easy but hiking 2 - 3 km involved, the first part up a steep sand slope. Not suitable for people that have problem walking on rough terrain or hiking in winds and rain
What days can I go?
Mondays - Saturdays
CLOSED ON SUNDAYS
Ingólfshöfði Nature reserve
Cape Ingolfshofdi is an isolated headland on the coast half way between Skaftafell in Vatnajokull National Park and Jökulsárlón ice lagoon. This historical nature reserve is home of many species of nesting seabirds, like puffins and great skuas. The cape is named after the first settler of Iceland, Ingolfur Arnarson, who spent his first winter in Iceland there in the year 874 AD.
To get to Ingólfshöfði we cross 7 km of waters, marshes, and sands in a tractor-drawn hay cart. The drive takes about 30 minutes each way, so we spend about 1 1/2 hour hiking around the cape. The tractor driver from the nearby farm becomes the tour guide, tells stories and explains the birdlife, and leads the guests safely through the nesting grounds on the cape.
The circle we hike around the nature reserve is 2-3 km long. In the beginning we need to walk up a steep sand slope, and then through rocky terrain, but then it gets easier, mostly hiking on flat grassland and we make many stops along the way. We don't recommend that people participate in this trip unless they can do this hike.
Important!
Be careful to bring good outdoor clothing for this trip, the area is often exposed to winds and rain, and sometimes sand storms. Perfect trip to try out your gore-tex outfit and gloves and hats, but on the other hand, sometimes it is possible to wear shorts and t-shirts on the trip. The Icelandic weather is included in the Ingólfshöfði Puffin Tour :-)
We always spend big part of the trip studying and admiring and photographing the puffins. However if you are mainly coming for serious photography we also offer special photography departures at 6:15 AM once or twice a week from mid June until early August. See Ingólfshöfði Photo Tour for details.
We also offer Ingólfshöfði Private Tour for groups, booking the hay cart and the time slot only for one party at a time. Suitable for groups.
For individual or family of up to 6 participants we also offer the private Black Coast Tour, using a modified Land Rover Defender and while that trip is offered all around the year, we do offer to add the puffin walk to that tour (extra 150.000) in the puffin period from 20th of April until 20th of August. That tour can also be modified to self drive tour for those that have their own well equipped 4wd vehicles.
Booking Calendar
Ingólfshöfði Puffin Tour in 2026
Cancellation policy
We will charge a cancellation fee of 100% if booking is cancelled 2 day or less before the event
We will charge a cancellation fee of 50% if booking is cancelled 7 days or less before the event
We will charge a cancellation fee of 25% if booking is cancelled 14 days or less before the event